Operating room gown belting means

ABSTRACT

A belting means for operating room gowns which includes a belt folded a plurality of times or rolled throughout a portion intermediate its two ends and positioned within a housing. The housing may be a sleeve which is open at each end attached to or forming part of the gown in the region of the gown wearer&#39;&#39;s waist. The ends of the belt extend from each end of the housing sleeve and may be covered by a protective wrap. Each end of the belt may be grasped and pulled from that end of the housing out of which it extends. To employ this belting means on a person wearing a gown, portions of the belt within the housing are aseptically withdrawn from the housing in opposite directions and carried around the wearer so that the belt encircles his body near the waist outside the gown. The belt ends are then fastened together. If the belt is not affixed to the housing or gown, it may optionally be rotated around the wearer to place its fastened ends at a location where they will not interfere with activity.

United States Patent Hartigan 1 Mar. 14, 1972 [54] OPERATING ROOM GOWNBELTING MEANS [72] Inventor: Edward G. Hartigan, Schaumburg, Ill.

[73] Assignee: The Kendall Company, Boston, Mass.

[22] Filed: Apr. 8, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 26,473

Primary Examiner-Richard]. Scanlan, Jr. v Attorney-Robert D. Chodera andT. W. Underhill [57] ABSTRACT A belting means for operating room gownswhich includes a belt folded a plurality of times or rolled throughout aportion intermediate its two ends and positioned within a housing. Thehousing may be a sleeve which'is open at each end attached to or formingpart of the gown in the region of the gown wearer's waist. The ends ofthe belt extend from each end of the housing sleeve and may be coveredby a protective wrap. Each end of the belt may be grasped and pulledfrom that end of the housing out of which it extends. To employ thisbelting means on a person wearing a gown, portions of the belt withinthe housing are aseptically withdrawn from the housing in oppositedirections and carried around the wearer so that the belt encircles hisbody near the waist outside the gown. The belt ends are then fastenedtogether. If the belt is not affixed to the housing or gown, it mayoptionally be rotated around the wearer to place its fastened ends at alocation where they will not interfere with activity.

14 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PATENTEDHAR 14-1912 SHEET 2 OF 3 INVE NTOR:

PATENTEDIAR 14 m2 sum 3 or 3 I INVENTOR. w was OPERATING ROOM GOWNBELTING MEANS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to anoperating room gown having a novel aseptic belting means and to a methodof using that belting means.

The necessity of maintaining proper aseptic conditions in an operatingroom throughout the preparation for and performance of a surgical orobstetrical procedure presents many serious problems to doctors andother hospital personnel. For instance, aseptic gowning of doctors andnurses in preparation for an operation has traditionally provendifficult to achieve satisfactorally. One phase in aseptic gowning thathas posed problems is the belting procedure. A doctor normally dons aback-closing operating room gown by inserting his hands and arms intoits sleeves and having the gown pulled up around his body so it willclose at his back. Usually some type of fastening means holds the gownclosed near the back portion of the collar. Means are also usuallyemployed to close the main body portion of the gown around the wearersbody and control the gown material, thereby preventing the gown fromflapping into the zone of operation, bunching, or interfering with thewearer or other persons around the wearer. Frequently a belt is employedto close the body portion of the gown around the doctor's or otherwearers, midsection and control the gown material. Since the belt, inuse, must extend around the back of the doctor, a nurse usually assistsin applying it around his body. In the past belts completely unattachedto the gown have been utilized. This requires handling two separateitems, the gown and the belt. Thus, the problem of maintaining asepticconditions is increased. As a separate item, the unattached belt may notbe adequately protected in sterile conditions. If one end of anunattached belt is accidentally dropped during the belting procedure,the belt is apt to fall into a lower nonsterile area and becomecontaminated.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides animproved aseptic belting means for operating room gowns. Briefly stated,this invention employs a belt having two ends folded a plurality oftimes or rolled upon itself throughout a portion intermediate its twoends to produce a compacted portion, with the ends of the belt extendingin generally opposite directions away from the compacted portion of thebelt. The compacted portion of the belt is positioned within a housingwhich includes one or more openings out of which the ends of the beltprotruded in opposite directions. The housing may comprise a sleeve ofmaterial or tunnel which is open at both end. The housing may beattached to or form a part of an operating room gown, preferably locatedin the region of a gown wearers midsection. One or both of the belt endsextending from the housing may be covered by removable protective wrapsto prevent contamination from resulting by the belt ends being graspedor contacted by a nonsterile person or object. The belting means may beutilized in connection with single use, disposable gowns and reusablegowns. The belt and housing may be constructed from the same material asthe major portion of the gown on which it is employed, or they may beconstructed of other materials, so long as the belt is reasonablyflexible and strong enough to secure the gown around the wearersmidsection. A few examples of suitable materials for construction of theelements of this belting means are cotton fabrics, paper, plastic, nylonreinforced nonwoven fabric, or any woven or nonwoven fabric recognizedin the art as appropriate for the manufacture of operating room gowns ordrapes.

In a preferred embodiment of this invention the compacted portion of thebelt is formed by folding the belt a plurality of times throughout aportion intermediate its ends along fold lines extending transverselyacross the width of the belt, thereby forming a compactaccordion-pleated or folded portion. The accordion-pleated portion isthen inserted in an open-ended housing sleeve with an end of the beltextending from each end of the sleeve. It should be noted that otherfolding patterns besides accordion-pleating of the belt may be employedin accordance with this invention, it being only necessary that the beltbe compactly folded or rolled such that a major intermediate portion ofthe belt may be positioned in the housing with the ends of the beltprotruding therefrom. The belting means presents a belt that may bemetered out of the housing at either end or both ends simultaneously.Such metering may be accomplished by pulling the end portion of the beltwhich protrudes from the housing in the direction of the desiredmetering. As the belt is pulled, the portion of the belt inside thehousing is progressively withdrawn from the housing.

A belt retaining means optionally may be included as part of the beltingmeans of this invention to prevent the entire belt from being pulledfrom the housing when only one end of the belt is pulled. The beltretaining means comprises a strip of material extending across theinterior of the housing between two layers of a folded portion of thebelt. The belt retaining means is usually attached at one or more pointsto the walls of the housing or to the body of the gown. When asufficient portion of the belt is pulled by one end from an opening inthe housing, the belt retainer catches one or more layers or loops ofthe folded belt within the housing and helps prevent the entire beltfrom being extracted from the housing. The retaining means thus preventsthe entire belt from being accidentally pulled from the housing andbecoming contaminated by falling into a nonsterile area.

Additionally, the belt retaining means may serve to regulate the lengthof belt which will be metered in one direction from the housing. Byappropriate placement of the belt retainer strip within the folds of thebelt, only a predetermined length of the belt will be metered from oneend of the housing before the retaining means catches on the belt. Thus,a predetermined length of belt may be withdrawn in each direction fromthe housing, permitting the belt ends to be fastened together at adesired location around the gown wearer.

The protective housing is usually affixed to an operating room gown inthe region of the wearers waist, preferably at one side of the gownsback portion.

In the normal gowning procedure of this invention, a sterile gownincluding a sterile belting means affixed thereto is donned by a doctoras previously described, with the back panel of the gown being closed byan overlapping relationship of the side portions of the back panel.Usually the doctor, or other gown wearer, is then aseptically gloved.Then, one end portion of the belt extending from the housing is graspedby one person, often the gown wearer, and the other end portion isusually grasped by another person. The ends are pulled in oppositedirections to progressively withdraw belt portions from the housing andare carried around the doctor so that the belt extends about his waistoutside the gown. Portions of the belt adjacent its two ends are thenfastened together, by tying or otherwise, so that the belt secures thegown around the doctors waist. The belt may or may not be affixed withinthe housing to the housing wall or gown body. If the belt is not soaffixed, the belt may be rotated about the doctor before or afterfastening the ends around his waist, so that the point of fastening ispositioned wherever desired around his midsection, such as at his backside, so as not to interfere with activity.

To withdraw the belt from the housing, as described above, it is oftenconvenient for the doctor being gowned to grasp the end of the beltnearest his front side and pull that end away from the housing andaround a portion of his body, while a nurse grasps the other end of thebelt and pulls it away from the housing in the opposite direction. Sincethe doctors hands generally are covered by sterile gloves, it is usuallyunnecessary for the belt portion he grasps to be covered with aprotective wrap. The other end, however, is often grasped and pulled bya circulating nurse, who is not considered sterile. Therefore, the endportion she grasps should be protected against contamination by beingcovered with a removable warp. The nurse pulls her end of the belt fromthe housing and carrier that end around the doctor to approximately thesame point as the other end has been carried in the opposite directionaround the doctor so that the belt encircles the doctors waist. Thenurse then hands her end of the belt to the doctor, who takes it at apoint not covered by the protective wrap. As she releases the belt, thenurse slides the protective wrap off the belt without contacting thebelt itself. In this way the doctor aseptically receives both ends ofthe sterile encircling belt. He can then tie the belt or otherwisefasten the ends together, and, if the belt is not attached to thehousing wall or gown, he may rotate the tie point around to his back,rather than leaving it at his front or side as has been common practicewith previous gown belts.

As just described, the doctor being gowned initially grasps only one endof the belt. However, if preferred, the housing may be positioned sothat the doctor can initially grasp both ends of the belt and draw thebelt from the housing and around his waist without the assistance of anurse. A third variation employs two nurses, each of which pulls aseparate end ofthe belt from the housing and carries it around thedoctor being gowned. If nonsterile personnel pull the belt ends in thisthird variation of the procedure, both ends of the belt should becovered with removable protective wraps to maintain the sterility of thebelt and gown.

According to a doctrine followed by some doctors the back portion of anoperating room gown is always considered nonsterile. The belting meansof this invention is readily adaptable to the practice of those doctorswho prescribe to this doctrine, especially if the belt is secured atsome point within the housing. As the belt is metered from the housing,those parts of the belt which must cross portions of the gown considerednonsterile may be held away from the gown itself until the belt ismetered out of the housing a sufficient distance for encircling thedoctor or until the point is reached where the belt is secured to thehousing, which terminates the belt metering. Then the belt may be tiedor otherwise fastened to secure the belt around the doctor. In this wayno part of the belt touches any portion of the gown which might beconsidered nonsterile, such as a back portion, prior to being broughtinto contact with a sterile area of the gown. Furthermore, if affixed tothe housing wall or gown body, the belt cannot be rotated about thedoctor to bring any portion of the belt considered possibly contaminatedinto contact with a sterile portion of the gown.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Other features and advantages of thisinvention will become apparent from the following description detailedin reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a view of one embodiment of the belting means of thisinvention with a compacted portion of the belt comprising anaccordion-pleated portion positioned inside the housing;

FIG. 2 shows the embodiment of FIG. 1 positioned on a back panel ofagown;

FIG. 3 shows one embodiment ofa belt retaining means that may beincluded as part of the belting means of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a view of an embodiment of the belting means of this inventionincluding the belt retaining means of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional perspective view of the belting means ofFIG. 4 taken along line 55;

FIG. 6 shows another embodiment ofa belt retaining means included on abelting means;

FIGS. 7-9 illustrate a sequence of steps in belting a gown in accordancewith this invention; and

FIG. shows a belting means in accordance with this invention positionedon a section of gown material with the protruding belt ends folded overthe top of the housing for packaging and use.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, thebelting means 1 includes a flexible belt 2 having a first end portion 3and a second end portion 4, a housing defined by an open-ended sleeve ortunnel 5, and a protective wrap 6 removable covering the first endportion 3. In this embodiment the belt 2 is compacted by being foldedback and forth a plurality of times over a substantial part of itslength intermediate its end portions 3 and 4 to form anaccordion-pleated or folded portion 7. The accordion-pleated portion 7of the belt is housed within the sleeve 5. The first belt end portion 3extends out of the first end 8 of the sleeve, and the second belt endportion 4 extends out of the second end 9 of the sleeve. Although it isnot critical to this invention, it has been found suitable in many casesfor the belt end portions to initially extend from 4 to 6 inches out ofthe sleeve ends. The protective wrap 6 preferably envelops the entiresegment of belt extending from the first end 8 of the sleeve. The wrapmay extend its coverage to include a small portion of the belt withinthe housing sleeve 5, if desired. However, it is only necessary that theprotective wrap cover enough of the first belt end portion 3 to enable anurse, or other person, to grasp and pull that end without contactingthe belt itself. If desired, for additional protection, anotherprotective wrap 61, as shown in FIG. 4, may be placed over the secondbelt end portion in a fashion similar to that described for the firstend. Means for attaching the belting means to a gown or other surfacemay be placed at any advantageous position on the sleeve. In theembodiment shown in FIG. 1, the attachment means is tacky adhesive 10placed on the outer surface of that portion of the sleeve 5 which isplaced directly adjacent to the body portion of the gown. As an optionaladditional feature the belt may be attached at a point along itsintermediate portion to the interior wall of the housing to prevent thebelt from being pulled completely out of the housing when only one endof the belt is pulled and also to permit the metering of a definitemaximum length of belt from each end of the housing.

FIG. 2 illustrates one position where this belting means mayadvantageously be affixed to an operating room gown. FIG. 2 shows a gown11 which is closable down its back panel or portion 12 by a first marinal portion 13 overlapping a second marginal portion 14 at the back ofthe gown. The belting means 1 is attached to the gown in the vicinity ofthe wearers waist and is spaced from the edge of first marginal portion13 toward one side of the gown. It is usually preferable to position thebelting means 1 on that side of the back portion 12 which includes theoverlapping marginal portion 13, so that when the belt is drawn acrossthe back of the gown overlapping marginal portion 13 will be drawn overand against the underlying marginal portion 14 to close the gown. THebelting means is also positioned so that the first end portion 3 of thebelt points generally toward the overlapping marginal portion 13 and thesecond end portion 4 of the belt points generally toward the side andperhaps the front portion 15 of the gown, so that a wearer of the gownmay easily grasp the second end portion 4 with his hand nearest thereto.

A belt retaining means 16 that may be employed as part of the beltingmeans of this invention is illustrated in FIGS. 3-5. FIG. 3 shows onetype of belt retaining means contemplated by this invention in anunfolded condition. THe belt retaining means 16 comprises an L-shapedpiece of material having a first flap 17 and a second flap 18 extendingtherefrom in an approximately right angle. FIG. 4, shows the beltretaining means 16 of FIG. 3 as part of the belting means. The belt 2 isfolded back and forth a plurality of times along fold lines extendingtransversely across the width of the belt, such as fold line 24, to forma folded portion 7 in which segments of the belt are layered upon eachother in an accordion-pleated fashion. The folded portion 7 is housedwithin the protective sleeve 5, as described above. The first flap 17 ofthe belt retaining means 16 is positioned between two adjacent layers 22and 23 of the folded portion 7 of the belt. The retaining means 16 isfolded around the layers of the folded portion 7 on one side of firstflap 17, such that at least part of the second flap 18 is positionedbetween the folded portion 7 of the belt and the wall 19 of the sleeve5. The end portion 20 of the second flap 18 is folded back over the endedge 21 of the sleeve wall 19 to secure the belt retaining means in thesleeve.

Additional or alternative attaching means may also be employed to securethe belt retaining means within the sleeve. Such attaching means includeadhesive material 60 attaching the second flap to the sleeve or gown. Inorder for the belt retaining means to prevent the belt from beingcompletely withdrawn from the housing sleeve from a given end of thesleeve, the first flap of the belt retaining means should be positionedbetween two adjacent layers of the folded portion of the belt betweenthe fold line connecting those two adjacent layers and that end of thesleeve out of which complete withdrawal of the belt is to be prevented.Thus, in reference to FIG. 4, positioning of the first flap 17 of theretaining means between layer 22 and layer 23 helps prevent the beltfrom being pulled completely out of the sleeve 5 at its first end 8,since the first flap 17 is between the fold line 24 connecting the twolayers 22 and 23 and the first end 8 of the housing sleeve.

The relationship of the retaining means first flap 17 to the foldedportion of the belt can be seen in FIG. 5, which shows a cross sectionalview of the belting means of FIG. 4 taken along line 5-5. The first flap17 extends between layers 22 and 23 of the folded portion of the beltand around the lower layers of the folded portion. The second play 18 ofthe retaining means extends forward in the direction of the second endof the sleeve between the folded portion of the belt and the sleeve wall19.

FIG. 6 illustrates a belting means including another embodiment of thebelt retaining means. In this embodiment the belt retaining means is astrip 28 of material attached at its ends 29 and 30 to the inside ofthehousing sleeve wall 19.

The belt is more likely to be accidentally pulled completely from thehousing by an assisting nurse than by the gown wearer unless a retainerdevice is employed. Therefore, the belt retaining means may be moreoften advantageously used to prevent the belt from being completelywithdrawn from the housing at that end from which an assisting nursepulls the belt. Of course, a belt retaining means may be employedequally well to prevent the belt from being pulled from the other end ofthe housing. In fact, if desired, two belt retaining means could beemployed on a single belting means to help prevent the belt fromaccidentally being pulled completely out of the housing at either end.

By preventing the belt from being pulled by one end completely out ofthe housing, the belt retaining means prevents the other end of the beltfrom accidentally dropping from the housing into lower nonsterile areasand being contaminated. The belt retainer also may serve as a meteringdevice to allow the proper length of belt to be withdrawn from each endof the housing so that the belt will extend around the wearer to be tiedat a predetermined location, such as at the wearers front.

A method of using the belting means in accordance with this invention inthe aseptic gowning of doctors, or other persons, is illustrated inFIGS. 7-9. FIG. 7 shows a doctor wearing a sterile operating room gownthat closes down the back by overlapping marginal portions 13,14. Thegown includes means 31 for maintaining the marginal portions 13,14closed near the back of the collar of the gown. The gown includes asterile belting means 1 attached to the back of the gown toward theright side of the gown wearer. To secure the belt around his waist bythe method of this invention, the doctor or other wearer grasps the endportion of the belt closest to the right side of the gown with hisaseptically gloved right hand 32. Another person 33, such as acirculating nurse, grasps the other end portion 3 of the belt throughthe covering protective wrap 6, without contacting any portion of thesterile gown body or any portion of the sterile belting means other thanthe protective wrap.

As shown in FIG. 8, the doctor being gowned and the assisting nurse eachpull a portion of the belt from opposite ends of the housing and carrytheir respective belt ends around to the front of the doctor, so thatthe belt will surround the doctor near his waist. Then, as shown, thenurse hands her end 3 of the belt to the doctor, who grasps it at apoint not covered by the protective wrap 6. The nurse then slips theprotective wrap 6 off the belt, which leaves the doctor holding each endof the belt in a completely uncontaminated condition.

The doctor then cinches the belt 2 to close the gown about themidsection of his body, and ties the belt at his front, as shown in FIG.9.

If the belt 2 is not secured to the wall of the housing, or otherwiseheld stationary, it may be rotated through the housing around thecircumference of the wearers body. Thus, if the doctor desires to removethe tied ends of the belt from his front, he may slide the belt aroundhis body so that the tie point 34 is located elsewhere, such as at hisback, possibly tucking the tie point into the housing.

A number of uses and advantages for the belting means and method of thisinvention have been discussed above. Another advantage of this inventionis that the housing may protect the belt from contamination even after aportion of the belt has been pulled from it. For instance, if the nurseshould accidentally drop her end of the belt after pulling it partiallyfrom the housing, that end will not drop down the complete length of thebelt. Instead, the housing will uphold the belt, possibly preventing itfrom dropping into a nonsterile area. This permits the nurse to regraspthe dropped end of the belt which has not been contaminated with herhand or other holding means, such as forceps, and resume the gowningprocedure, without requiring the procurement of a new belt or gown.

In the folding or packaging of a gown having the belting means of thisinvention, the belt ends 3 and 4 may be folded back against themselvesor against the housing wall, possibly with one end portion overlappingthe other, as shown in FIG. 10. This folding pattern is useful in thatit causes the belt end portions 3 and 4 to stand out from the gown afterthe gown has been unfolded and placed on a doctor, presenting tabs thatare readily available for grasping by the doctor and nurse.

The belting means of this invention may be sterilized prior to use byany one of several conventional methods now being employed to sterilizeoperating room materials, such as autoclaving or ethylene oxidesterilization. The belting means may be sterilized after it is attachedto an operating room gown, or it may be separately sterilized andaseptically affixed to a previously sterilized gown.

As mentioned above, several modifications to the above detailed methodof using this belting means fall within the scope of this invention.Each end of the belt may be grasped by separate nurses and drawn aroundthe doctor. The doctor may even grasp and pull both end portions awayfrom the housing by himself. Several other embodiments and modificationsofthis belting means and method ofusing will be obvious to personsskilled in the art of this invention upon reading this disclosure. Suchembodiments and modifications are intended as within the scope of theinvention, except as limited by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A belting means for operating room gowns comprising a flexible belthaving a first end portion, a second end portion, and an intermediateportion between said end portions,

a housing having a pair of spaced openings therein,

said belt being compacted in its intermediate portion to form acompacted portion and being positioned with said compacted portioninside said housing and with said first and second end portions of saidbelt extending out of said housing through said openings,

said compacted portion of the belt comprising a folded portion having aplurality of layers formed by folding said belt back and forth aplurality of times throughout said intermediate portion along fold lineswhich extend transversely across the width of said belt, and

belt retaining means comprising a strip of material having two ends,said strip extending between two layers of said folded portion of saidbelt within said sleeve, said belt retaining means being secured withinsaid sleeve.

2. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said housing comprises a sleeveof material having a first end and a second end, said first end havingan opening therein through which said first end portion of said beltextends out ofsaid sleeve and said second end having an opening thereinthrough which said second end portion of said belt extends out of saidsleeve.

3. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said belt retaining means issecured within said sleeve by being attached to the sleeve at one end ofsaid strip.

4. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said belt retaining means issecured within said sleeve by being attached to the sleeve at both endsof said strip.

5. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said belt retaining means issecured within said sleeve by adhesive means.

6. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said belt retaining meanscomprises an L-shaped piece of material having first and second flapssubstantially perpendicular to each other, said L-shaped piece ofmaterial being folded such that said first flap extends between said twolayers of said folded portion of belt and said second flap extendsbetween said belt and the interior wall of said sleeve.

7. The belting means of claim 6 wherein said second flap is attached byadhesive means to said sleeve to thereby secure said belt retainingmeans within said sleeve.

8. The belting means of claim 6 wherein said second flap is attached tosaid sleeve by being folded back over an edge of one end of said sleeve.

9. The belting means of claim 1 including attachment means forpermanently securing said belting means to an operating room gown.

10. An operating room gown having a body portion, including incombination therewith the belting means of claim 9 secured to said bodyportion of said gown by said attachment means.

11. In combination with an operating room gown having a body portionwhich is closable by a first marginal portion overlapping a secondmarginal portion, the belting means of claim 9 wherein said beltingmeans is secured to said gown by said attachment means, said attachmentmeans attaching said housing to the body portion of said gown in theregion of a gown wearers waist.

12. The combination ofclaim 11 wherein said gown is closable down itsback portion by said first marginal portion overlapping said secondmarginal portion, said housing being attached to a section of the gownsback portion which includes said first marginal portion.

13. The belting means of claim 1 including a protective wrap removablycovering at least part of said first end portion of said belt.

14. The belting means of claim 13 including a second protective wrapremovably covering at least part of said second end portion ofsaid belt.

1. A belting means for operating room gowns comprising a flexible belthaving a first end portion, a second end portion, and an intermediateportion between said end portions, a housing having a pair of spacedopenings therein, said belt being compacted in its intermediate portionto form a compacted portion and being positioned with said compactedportion inside said housing and with said first and second end portionsof said belt extending out of said housing through said openings, saidcompacted portion of the belt comprising a folded portion having aplurality of layers formed by folding said belt back and forth aplurality of times throughout said intermediate portion along fold lineswhich extend transversely across the width of said belt, and beltretaining means comprising a strip of material having two ends, saidstrip extending between two layers of said folded portion of said beltwithin said sleeve, said belt retaining means being secured within saidsleeve.
 2. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said housing comprises asleeve of material having a first end and a second end, said first endhaving an opening therein through which said first end portion of saidbelt extends out of said sleeve and said second end having an openingtherein through which said second end portion of said belt extends outof said sleeve.
 3. The belting means of claim 1 wherein said beltretaining means is secured within said sleeve by being attached to thesleeve at one end of said strip.
 4. The belting means of claim 1 whereinsaid belt retaining means is secured within said sleeve by beingattached to the sleeve at both ends of said strip.
 5. The belting meansof claim 1 wherein said belt retaining means is secured within saidsleeve by adhesive means.
 6. The belting means of claim 1 wherein saidbelt retaining means comprises an L-shaped piece of material havingfirst and second flaps substantially perpendicular to each other, saidL-shaped piece of material being folded such that said first flapextends between said two layers of said folded portion of belt and saidsecond flap extends between said belt and the interior wall of saidsleeve.
 7. The belting means of claim 6 wherein said second flap isattached by adhesive means to said sleeve to thereby secure said beltretaining means within said sleeve.
 8. The belting means of claim 6wherein said second flap is attached to said sleeve by being folded backover an edge of one end of said sleeve.
 9. The belting means of claim 1including attachment means for permanently securing said belting meansto an operating room gown.
 10. An operating room gown having a bodyportion, including in combination therewith the belting means of claim 9secured to said body portion of said gown by said attachment means. 11.In combination with an operating room gown having a body portion whichis closable by a first marginal portion overlapping a second marginalportion, the belting means of claim 9 wherein said belting means issecured to said gown by said attachment means, said attachment meansattaching said housing to the body portion of said gown in the region ofa gown wearer''s waist.
 12. The combination of claim 11 wherein saidgown is closable down its back portion by said first marginal portionoverlapping said second marginal portion, said housing being attached toa section of the gown''s back portion which includes said first marginalportion.
 13. The belting means of claim 1 including a protective wrapremovably covering at least part of said first end portion of said belt.14. The belting means of claim 13 including a second protective wrapremovably covering at least part of said second end portion of saidbelt.